The Empress In The Modern Era [Entertainment Industry GL] - Chapter 7

There were not many good hotels around the filming base, so most production dinners were booked at this hotel. Today, besides the pre-filming dinner for Heroes Through Wind and Rain, the film Yu Shilan was shooting, it was also the pre-filming dinner for the xianxia period drama Wang Yun was going to shoot. However, their side had booked the time half an hour later than the room next door, so Wang Yun had arrived very early.

Assistants did not attend dinners for the main creative team. Wang Yun sat two seats away from the main seat and took out her phone to wait for Tao Xiaomei’s message.

Finding out Yu Shilan’s name was not difficult. Although it might not be available online for now, Tao Xiaomei had, after all, been around the entertainment industry for several years and knew a few other artists’ assistants. Very quickly, she found out Yu Shilan’s name from the assistant of a male actor next door.

Once Wang Yun learned Yu Shilan’s name, she immediately searched online. But for an ordinary person, there was truly very little information to find online. Yu Shilan only had two pieces of information available: one was a list of outstanding graduates released by her high school when students were taking university entrance exams, and the other was an award list from a competition she had participated in at university.

Putting away her phone, Wang Yun could not help thinking to herself that she had not expected this person to be capable in every way. She was even a top student.

People gradually entered the private room one after another, so Wang Yun no longer had the chance to look at her phone. One after another, whether they were the director, assistant directors, producers, and screenwriters from the crew, or the male and female leads and some veteran actors among the cast, all of them were people Wang Yun, an eighteenth-tier actress, had to build good relationships with.

Because of that, she could only stand up again and again, greeting them with a smiling face again and again.

But when she saw Dai Qian walk in behind the producer, the smile on her face nearly became impossible to keep up. She and Dai Qian did not get along. They seriously did not get along. And this drama was starting filming tomorrow, yet Dai Qian had not been on the cast list Wang Yun had received. But based on Wang Yun’s understanding of Dai Qian, Dai Qian would not appear for no reason. Wang Yun inexplicably had a bad feeling.

“Yunzi!” Outside, Dai Qian put on an enthusiastic appearance toward her.

Wang Yun squeezed out a hint of a smile, her attitude just as warm. “Qianqian, why are you here too? I remember you aren’t in this drama.”

Dai Qian smiled apologetically at the producer, then stepped forward and took Wang Yun’s hand. “Didn’t I lose a role in Heroes Through Wind and Rain? So I thought I’d come take a look and see if I could get a role here. You know how it is. I’m not Qinglin’s own daughter. Good roles don’t fall to me, and I have to scramble for bad roles myself too. Unlike you. He Zeng dotes on you so much.”

Qinglin Media was considered a long-established entertainment company and was very famous in the industry. Not only did it have veteran film emperors and film queens, it also had currently popular young male idols and major young actresses, and even veteran actors by the handful. Dai Qian had only joined Qinglin not long ago, and her manager there was also fairly ordinary. Wanting to get good roles was indeed not easy.

But no matter how difficult it was, Qinglin’s scale was still larger than Baoqing’s. And the way she said those words…

Wang Yun smiled. “I haven’t seen you in a few days, and that mouth of yours has gotten even looser. A perfectly normal sentence sounds completely different once you say it.”

The two of them exchanged verbal thrusts, but everyone else pretended not to understand. They merely laughed along and did not pick up the topic.

Dai Qian clustered around Wang Yun and sat her down, while she herself sat closer to the main seat.

Once everyone had arrived one after another, the director and producer gave their opening remarks. Afterward, everyone chatted among themselves. Dai Qian smiled and toasted the producer and director sitting beside her. Toasting by herself was not enough; she pointed at Wang Yun and said to the director, “Brother Xia, let me tell you, when it comes to drinking, our Yunzi is still the best. She can down four bottles of beer without any reaction at all.”

Wang Yun was currently drinking with the male lead sitting across from her. This male lead was lecherous. Wang Yun was beautiful, and everyone privately knew that she was very bold and uninhibited, so the male lead had made eyes at her several times.

This drama would take at least three months to film. How could he get through three months without touching a woman? It was better to find this kind of pretty newcomer who was easy to get. After sleeping with her, he could introduce two job opportunities to her. It would not hurt him at all.

The male lead took the initiative to toast her. How could Wang Yun dare not drink?

Never mind rejecting him by saying her period had come—she did not even dare show the slightest bit of displeasure.

She had accompanied him through two glasses on this side when she suddenly heard Dai Qian’s words. Wang Yun was so angry she truly wanted to pour the red wine in her hand over Dai Qian’s head. The two of them had fallen out because of certain matters. They disliked each other in their hearts, and even saying a few unpleasant words could be brushed aside. But this woman had actually come today to set her up?

But before she could speak, Director Xia called out for Dai Qian to switch seats with him and sat down beside Wang Yun.

Seeing this situation, the male lead died down.

Although this drama was adapted from a novel, the novel was not very popular, and the investment was not large. Because of that, the actors invited were all mid-tier. Even if the male lead was somewhat self-important, he did not dare offend the director before filming had even begun. If the director did not take him seriously later and deliberately made things difficult for him during filming, that would already be getting off lightly.

“Xiao Yun, now this isn’t very proper of you. Since you can drink so well, why didn’t you know to come drink a glass with Brother Xia?” Director Xia sat beside Wang Yun. Although his body did not do anything too outrageous, his eyes had already looked Wang Yun up and down without the slightest politeness. “Come, come, come. If you don’t drink, then you’re not giving Brother Xia face. No matter what, you have to accompany Brother Xia for a couple glasses today.”

Wang Yun could only smile and raise her glass.

Everyone envied the glamour of being a celebrity, but they could not see that beneath all that glamour was work day and night. It was wearing winter clothes in the middle of summer, jumping into cold water in the middle of winter, and worst of all, in private, as an actress, whether you were popular or not, you were definitely not bad-looking. And if you were not bad-looking, there would always be self-important men in the entertainment industry who felt they could spend a little money or use a little power to sleep with you.

Only once you became popular would you have the confidence to say no. But even then, it was not something you could do at all times. At most, you could filter out some low-level scum. When you ran into high-level scum, you still had to use your wits.

Or unless you had powerful backing. Only then could you treat this kind of situation coldly.

And if you had nothing, then you could only let tears flow into your heart, swallow the bitterness in your mouth, and smile as you faced the filth and ugliness you had no choice but to face.

Even if Director Xia did not know about Wang Yun’s private habit of acknowledging godbrothers, god-little brothers, and godfathers, just the fact that Wang Yun did not even count as eighteenth-tier was enough for him to fear nothing.

Glass after glass. Only when the people beside them could not bear to watch anymore and came out to persuade him did Wang Yun cover her mouth and leave.

She hugged the toilet in the restroom and vomited for ten minutes before she finally felt a little better. But when she came out to wash her hands and rinse her mouth, she discovered that Dai Qian had followed her in at some point. She leaned beside the sink, watching Wang Yun with an especially mocking smile.

Wang Yun raised a hand and wiped her mouth. “Dai Qian, what do you want?”

Dai Qian smiled. “What do I want? Of course I want to help you.”

Wang Yun glared at her angrily.

Dai Qian smiled. “Don’t you love acknowledging godbrothers? Perfect. You can acknowledge Director Xia now. You should know, if you don’t hurry up and acknowledge him, hurry up and climb into his bed and serve him well, your role will be gone.”

“What do you mean?” Wang Yun already had a faint guess in her heart.

“I’m stealing your role. You can’t even see that?” Dai Qian said bluntly. “Hurry up. Everyone is still waiting for you. If you don’t come out for too long, Director Xia will think you’re angry. Don’t blame me for not warning you.”

Wang Yun charged forward in one step and grabbed Dai Qian’s wrist tightly. “Impossible. Our Baoqing invested in this drama, but it has nothing to do with your Qinglin. There’s no way you can steal my role!”

Dai Qian struggled but could not break free, and her expression changed too.

“Why not? I learned it from you. I acknowledged the producer as my godbrother. It’s just a second female lead role. If he wants to give it to me, then he gives it to me,” she said. “As for you, after replacing you, they promised to add more scenes for the male actor Baoqing plans to heavily promote, and also added two small supporting roles. Do you think He Zeng is so impressive? Baoqing isn’t his company. It’s useless for him to side with you!”

Put that way, it truly was possible.

The company also had to weigh the pros and cons. She could not compare to that male actor, not to mention there were also two additional supporting roles attached.

Anger surged in Wang Yun’s heart, and she immediately lifted her other hand.

Dai Qian was not afraid of her and hurriedly said, “You want to hit me? Back then, this was exactly how you stole my role. We’re just even now. What right do you have to be angry? Wang Yun, I’m telling you, if you dare hit me now, tomorrow I’ll make sure you can’t survive in the entertainment industry!”

This was a hotel beside the filming base. If she really made a move, once it was exposed, both sides would suffer. And what Wang Yun said was right. Her family background was far better than Wang Yun’s. If she truly wanted to drive Wang Yun out, she did indeed have that ability.

Wang Yun could only lower her hand in fury.

Dai Qian smiled smugly.

Wang Yun raised her foot and stepped on Dai Qian’s instep as she walked out.

“Ah!” Dai Qian shrieked, immediately cursing in pain, “You bitch!”

Wang Yun staggered quickly down the corridor, but as she walked, her eyes turned red. Yet she did not really have anything to feel wronged about. Just as Dai Qian had said, back then, she had stolen a role from Dai Qian’s hands. Now Dai Qian had stolen one from hers. Fortune went around in circles. One repayment for another, that was all.

Since the matter was basically settled, even if she truly threw caution to the wind and slept with Director Xia, she might not necessarily be able to snatch the role back. Besides, it was only the second female lead in a small-budget production. It was not worth paying that much for.

After returning to the private room, Wang Yun lowered her head, picked up her bag, casually found an excuse, and left.

But once she got outside, she realized the sky had somehow already turned completely dark. It was still early, and outside was rather lively. Besides all kinds of small businesses, there were also quite a few people slowly strolling along the roadside. This only made her, alone by herself, seem even more lonely and pitiful.

She kept walking and walking, then suddenly did not want to walk anymore. She found a step and sat down on the ground, letting herself cry from the sadness in her heart while thinking that maybe she should simply find a rich old man and marry him.

That way, at most, she would be ruined by one person. Unlike now, when everyone wanted to ruin her.

……

On Yu Shilan’s side, when the gathering was nearing its end, she received a message from Yu Yuanxing.

Yu Yuanxing: Sis, which hotel are you eating at?

Yu Shilan replied with the hotel name, then asked him: Why are you asking? Is something wrong?

Yu Yuanxing: Hehe. You suddenly said you were entering the entertainment industry, so Mom and Dad were worried, right? Since I’m on summer break, they sent me to come check on you, so I came. I only arrived at six. I booked the hotel you’re staying at.

Yu Shilan sent him a row of ellipses.

Yu Yuanxing quickly chased after it with another message: All right, I admit it’s because I saw the news released online and found out Fairy Sister is the female lead in the movie you’re acting in, so I came. I never had the chance to chase stars before, but now my own sister is an actress. Surely you can get me an autographed photo, right? Or maybe you could ask her to take a photo with me?

A photo together was hard to say. An autographed photo was probably difficult too. But a signature should probably be no problem.

During this entire meal, Qiao Feiyu had been using her as a shield. Even if that surface-level warmth was exploitation, after using her, she still had to pay a little interest.

“Sister Qiao,” Yu Shilan quietly said to Qiao Feiyu. “My younger brother is your loyal fan. Could you give me an autograph? After he saw the news the crew released online, he already charged over here.”

Qiao Feiyu glanced at Yu Shilan in surprise and agreed immediately. “I still have a photo here. I’ll give you an autographed photo.”

Yu Shilan was pleasantly surprised. “That would be even better! That brat even wanted a photo with you. With this signed photo, I can finally deal with him.”

Qiao Feiyu took out the photo and asked a server for a pen, then signed her name.

“If he’s nearby right now, a photo together is fine too. I can wait a little,” she said.

The surprise was so great that Yu Shilan actually calmed down.

Qiao Feiyu smiled, her voice soft. “I troubled you tonight. Since we can act together, that’s fate too. Let’s just consider it making a friend. My friend’s younger brother is my fan, so what’s wrong with taking a photo together?”

During university, Yu Shilan had not made any good friends. She had not expected that after entering the entertainment industry, in such a short time, two people would already want to be friends with her. One was Wang Min, the benefactor who had helped her, and the other was Qiao Feiyu, who, even if she did not help her, was already a benefactor just by being willing to be friends with her.

Yu Shilan restrained her excitement. After exchanging a smile with Wang Min, she turned to Qiao Feiyu and nodded.

She immediately texted this good news to Yu Yuanxing.

As a result, she waited for a long time without receiving a reply.

A probing look appeared in Qiao Feiyu’s eyes, while Yu Shilan felt embarrassed. Yu Yuanxing had dropped the ball at the critical moment. Surely Qiao Feiyu would not think Yu Shilan was trying to curry favor with her, so she had randomly made up a younger brother, right?

Qiao Feiyu really did think that.

“It’s fine. There will be chances in the future too,” she said considerately, helping Yu Shilan out of the awkward situation. After all, to a newcomer, she really could count as a golden thigh. Today, she had technically used Yu Shilan, so letting Yu Shilan cling to her thigh a little was nothing.

After the gathering ended, everyone left the hotel. Qiao Feiyu got into her nanny van and left. Only then did Yu Shilan finally lose her temper for the first time and call Yu Yuanxing.

At that moment, Yu Yuanxing was half-carrying a drunk woman as he opened the door to his room. Only after throwing her onto the bed did he have time to take out his phone and answer the call. “Hello, Sis.”

“What were you doing? I sent you messages and you didn’t reply. I called you and you took forever to answer. Your Fairy Sister already left!” Yu Shilan said irritably. “And that’s not even all. Because you disappeared without a word, she probably thought I wanted to curry favor with her and deliberately made up a younger brother! Right, what happened to you? Are you all right?”

Since he had not replied to messages or answered calls, Yu Shilan was actually more worried about his safety.

Yu Yuanxing listened calmly, grasped the main point, and asked excitedly, “You told Fairy Sister about me?”

Yu Shilan felt a wave of helplessness. Since he was still focused on his Fairy Sister, that proved nothing had really happened to him. “I did. She even agreed to take a photo with you and waited a while on purpose. In the end, there wasn’t a single bit of news from you.”

Yu Yuanxing was overwhelmed with regret. After telling Yu Shilan his room number, he said, “Ai, it’s a long story. Come back quickly. I’ve got a little trouble here.”

Because she did not know what kind of trouble it was, after hanging up, Yu Shilan hurried back.

“Shilan!” Wang Min called out to her.

“Sister Wang.” Yu Shilan stopped and waited for Wang Min.

Wang Min smiled and patted her shoulder. “It’s late at night. Although it isn’t far, it still isn’t safe for a girl like you. Come with me. Ride in my car.”

Having backing was sometimes a good thing and sometimes not. As for Yu Shilan, she simply did not want to be too special.

“No need, Sister Wang. My younger brother is here. He’s just up ahead eating a midnight snack while waiting for me. I’ll be there after walking a few steps. No need to trouble you,” she said.

Wang Min nodded. “That’s fine too. Don’t eat anymore. Sleep early tonight too, and don’t drink too much water, otherwise your face won’t look good on camera tomorrow.”

Yu Shilan agreed to each point one by one, and only after seeing Wang Min into her car did she let out a breath of relief. Suddenly being treated kindly by someone she was not familiar with was also a lot of pressure.

She quickly returned to the hotel. Just as she reached Yu Yuanxing’s door and had not yet had time to knock, the door opened.

Yu Yuanxing dragged Yu Shilan inside and said while pulling her in, “Sis, do you know Wang Yun? I saw her drunk by the roadside. Her phone was locked and I didn’t have the password, so I couldn’t contact her assistant. I could only bring her back.”

Wang Yun?

Hearing the name, Yu Shilan felt it sounded familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere before.

“Is she a celebrity?” she asked. Since an assistant was involved, Yu Shilan automatically reacted that way.

Yu Yuanxing pointed at Wang Yun, who was lying facedown on the bed asleep, and said, “There, that’s her. She’s a celebrity, just not very popular. But she was in that spy drama I watched before, so I recognized her at a glance.”

If he had not recognized that she was a celebrity, then upon seeing a woman drunk and crying by the roadside, his first reaction would actually have been to call the police.

Yu Shilan could not exactly blame her younger brother for meddling. As someone who had entered the entertainment industry, although she had not experienced that darkness yet, she had already learned a little about it. For a female artist like this, being sent to the police station because she had gotten drunk and collapsed on the street really would not be a good reputation.

Yu Shilan sighed and said, “How about this? I’ll open another room for you. Tonight, let her stay here.”

After saying this, she felt Wang Yun’s sleeping posture might not be very comfortable, so she went forward, turned her over, and pulled the blanket over her. After all, the air conditioner was on in the room. If Wang Yun did not cover herself for the whole night, she might end up getting sick from the cold. A drunk person was different from usual, after all.

Wang Yun was turned over, but she had almost no awareness. In her mind, she was still thinking about what had happened tonight. On one hand, she hated Dai Qian so much her teeth itched. On the other, she felt nauseated by that vulgar Director Xia. But in the end, who knew how, as she kept thinking and thinking, she ended up thinking of the very capable Yu Shilan.

“Yu Shilan, what exactly are you capable of?” she murmured in her daze.

Yu Yuanxing: “…” You two really don’t know each other?

Yu Shilan: “…” Who is this woman?

How does she know my name?

Also, why does she look a little familiar?